Bible Myths and their Parallels in other Religions by T. W. Doane

THE SONG OF THE HEAVENLY HOST. The story of the Song of the Heavenly Host belongs exclusively to the _Luke_ narrator, and, in substance, is as follows: At the time of the birth of Christ Jesus, there were shepherds abiding in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And the angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them, and the angel said: "I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people; for unto you is born this day in the city of David, a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the Heavenly Host, praising God in song, saying: "Glory to God in the highest; and on earth peace, good will towards men." After this the angels went _into heaven_.[147:1] It is recorded in the _Vishnu Purana_[147:2] that while the virgin Devaki bore _Crishna_, "the protector of the world," in her womb, she was eulogized by the gods, and on the day of Crishna's birth, "the quarters of the horizon were irradiate with joy, as if moonlight was diffused over the whole earth." "_The spirits and the nymphs of heaven danced and sang_," and, "at _midnight_,[147:3] when the support of all was born, _the clouds emitted low pleasing sounds, and poured down rain of flowers_."[147:4] Similar demonstrations of celestial delight were not wanting at the birth of _Buddha_. All beings everywhere were full of joy. Music was to be heard all over the land, and, as in the case of Crishna, there fell from the skies a gentle shower of flowers and perfumes. Caressing breezes blew, and a marvellous light was produced.[147:5] The Fo-pen-hing relates that: "The attending spirits, who surrounded the Virgin Maya and the infant Saviour, singing praises of 'the Blessed One,' said: 'All joy be to you, Queen Maya, rejoice and be glad, for the child you have borne is holy.' Then the Rishis and Devas who dwelt on earth exclaimed with great joy: 'This day Buddha is born for the good of men, to dispel the darkness of their ignorance.' Then the four heavenly kings took up the strain and said: 'Now because Bôdhisatwa is born, to give joy and bring peace to the world, therefore is there this brightness.' Then the gods of the thirty-three heavens took up the burden of the strain, and the Yama Devas and the Tûsita Devas, and so forth, through all the heavens of the Kama, Rupa, and Arupa worlds, even up to the Akanishta heavens, all the Devas joined in this song, and said: '_To-day Bôdhisatwa is born on earth, to give joy and peace to men and Devas, to shed light in the dark places, and to give sight to the blind._"[148:1] Even the sober philosopher _Confucius_ did not enter the world, if we may believe Chinese tradition, without premonitory symptoms of his greatness.[148:2] Sir John Francis Davis, speaking of Confucius, says: "Various prodigies, _as in other instances_, were the forerunners of the birth of this extraordinary person. On the eve of his appearance upon earth, _celestial music_ sounded in the ears of his mother; and when he was born, this inscription appeared on his breast: 'The maker of a rule for setting the World.'"[148:3] In the case of _Osiris_, the Egyptian Saviour, at his birth, a voice was heard proclaiming that: "The Ruler of all the Earth is born."[148:4] In Plutarch's "_Isis_" occurs the following: "At the birth of Osiris, there was heard a voice that the Lord of all the Earth was coming in being; and some say that a woman named Pamgle, as she was going to carry water to the temple of Ammon, in the city of Thebes, heard that voice, which commanded her to proclaim it with a loud voice, that the great beneficent god Osiris was born."[148:5] Wonderful demonstrations of delight also attended the birth of the heavenly-born _Apollonius_. According to Flavius Philostratus, who wrote the life of this remarkable man, a flock of swans surrounded his mother, and clapping their wings, as is their custom, they sang in unison, while the air was fanned by gentle breezes. When the god _Apollo_ was born of the virgin Latona in the Island of Delos, there was joy among the undying gods in Olympus, and the Earth laughed beneath the smile of Heaven.[148:6] At the time of the birth of "_Hercules the Saviour_," his father Zeus, the god of gods, spake from heaven and said: "This day shall a child be born of the race of Perseus, who shall be the mightiest of the sons of men."[149:1] When _Æsculapius_ was a helpless infant, and when he was about to be put to death, a voice from the god Apollo was heard, saying: "Slay not the child with the mother; _he is born to do great things_; but bear him to the wise centaur Cheiron, and bid him train the boy in all his wisdom and teach him to do brave deeds, that men may praise his name in the generations that shall be hereafter."[149:2] As we stated above, the story of the Song of the Heavenly Host belongs exclusively to the _Luke_ narrator; none of the other writers of the synoptic Gospels know anything about it, which, if it really happened, seems very strange. If the reader will turn to the apocryphal Gospel called "_Protevangelion_" (chapter xiii.), he will there see one of the reasons why it was thought best to leave this Gospel out of the canon of the New Testament. It relates the "Miracles at Mary's labor," similar to the _Luke_ narrator, but in a still more wonderful form. It is probably from this apocryphal Gospel that the Luke narrator copied. FOOTNOTES: [147:1] Luke, ii. 8-15. [147:2] Translated from the original Sanscrit by H. H. Wilson, M. D., F. R. S. [147:3] All the virgin-born Saviours are born at _midnight or early dawn_. [147:4] Vishnu Purana, book v. ch. iii. p. 502. [147:5] See Amberly's Analysis, p. 226. Beal: Hist. Buddha, pp. 45, 46, 47, and Bunsen's Angel-Messiah, p. 35. [148:1] See Beal: Hist. Buddha, pp. 43, 55, 56, and Bunsen's Angel-Messiah, p. 35. [148:2] See Amberly: Analysis of Religious Belief, p. 84. [148:3] Davis: History of China, vol. ii. p. 48. See also Thornton: Hist. China, i. 152. [148:4] See Prichard's Egyptian Mythology, p. 56, and Kenrick's Egypt, vol. i. p. 408. [148:5] Bonwick: Egyptian Belief, p. 424, and Kenrick's Egypt, vol. i. p. 408. [148:6] See Tales of Ancient Greece, p. 4. [149:1] See Tales of Ancient Greece, p. 55. [149:2] Ibid. p. 45.